As soon as Lauren stepped out of the cab, she found herself not recognizing her surroundings.
But, that was normal.
She had just gotten to Cuba to find more about her birthplace, with her family.
Her parents and siblings were already at the hotel, the woman arriving late because she had work.
But, she saw a bunch of children that were covered in filth, sitting on the streets.
She was ambushed by a group of them, feeling a little hand grasp her wallet from her back pocket.
"Hey!" She grabbed the tiny wrist, finding a little girl who couldn't be older than 4.
Her eyes were filled with fear when the Cuban yelled at her.
"Corre!" One of the little boys shouted at her and she tried to pull away, making the Cuban hold onto her a bit tighter.
Lauren squatted down to be her height, taking her wallet from that little hand.
The tiny girl had pale skin and bright green eyes, reminding the woman of herself.
"Por que?" She asked the toddler, making her sniffle and rub her eyes to rid them from tears.
"A-Ambwienta..." she mispronounced, but tried her best to say.
Luckily the Cuban understood the girl.
She was hungry.
Lauren released her little arm, opening up her wallet.
"tómalo y no lo compartas con nadie. tampoco le digas a nadie que lo tienes." She told the toddler, giving her 50 dollars worth of Cuban money.
She told the girl not to tell anyone she had the money and to not share with anyone.
The tiny girl nodded her head, being sent on her merry way.
But as soon as she was a safe distance away, the group of kids all ambushed her.
They pushed, shoved, hit, scratched, all to get the money in her tiny hands.
She was left on the street empty handed and with a few nasty bruises and cuts.
Lauren sighed, going over to her when the crowd had dispersed.
"vamos, no te quedas aquí." She told her, gesturing for her to take her hand.
She told her that she wouldn't let her stay here, deciding to take her with her.
The little girl sniffled, wiping the blood off of her cheek.
"W-Wo siento..." she apologized, whimpering and looking up at the woman with tears streaming down her face.
Lauren looked down at the tiny girl, wiping her tears away.
"No es tu culpa." It's not your fault, she told her.
She decided to lift the child up, holding her on her hip as she walked her way to the hotel.
When she got there, her family went silent when they saw the child.
Clara mumbled a soft, "Que Chula..."
Lauren took the child to the bathroom of the hotel, sitting her on the counter.
"Habla usted ingles?" She asked her, starting a bath for her.
She nodded her head, letting the woman undress her.
"What's your name, baby?" The older woman asked her, using English.
"No."
"You don't have a name?" She shook her head no.
